


A Festival of Snow and Courage

by teddiehtet



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Holding Hands, Ice Skating, M/M, Ryuu and Sougo being fluffy!!, Snow Festival Date!, i7xmasexchange2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-27 04:53:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17155679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teddiehtet/pseuds/teddiehtet
Summary: “So you’re saying,” Tamaki spoke as he paced around Ryuunosuke. “You were preparing, all this time, and asking me for help, only to run away?”“It’s not really running away,” Ryuu explained. “I just didn’t get a chance to ask Sougo-kun.”“Isn’t it the same thing?” Tamaki questioned, slightly pursing his lips in a pout and folding his arms. “Ryuu-aniki, trust me when I say Sou-chan will be over the moon if you asked him to go with you to the Snow Festival.”---In which Ryuu and Sougo spend a day at the Snow Festival and never denies that it's a date.





	A Festival of Snow and Courage

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jeien](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeien/gifts).



“So you’re saying,” Tamaki spoke as he paced around Ryuunosuke. “You were preparing, all this time, and asking me for help, only to run away?”

“It’s not really running away,” Ryuu explained. “I just didn’t get a chance to ask Sougo-kun.”

“Isn’t it the same thing?” Tamaki questioned, slightly pursing his lips in a pout and folding his arms. “Ryuu-aniki, trust me when I say Sou-chan will be over the moon if you asked him to go with you to the Snow Festival.”

“But what if he wants to go with you and the others? I don’t want to ask him if he already made plans with all of you.”

“I think all of us already have plans. Rikkun said him and Iorin are spending this Friday and the weekend travelling a little with Tenten, Yama-san’s showing Naggichi around town, since he only has a month left in his transfer program, and I’m gonna go visit Aya.”

Ryuunosuke blinked. “You all…already have your plans?” Ryuu rested his chin between his right index finger and thumb. “Gaku did tell me that he and Mitsuki-kun had already gone to the festival a couple of days ago… Right, I remember Gaku saying that him and Mitsuki-kun are going to visit the neighboring town.” 

“Anyway,” Tamaki interrupted. “Back to the subject, Ryuu-aniki. Please just ask Sou-chan to go with you to the festival. I’ve been watching you two dance around each other since first year.”

Ryuu nervously chuckled. When Tamaki was a first year, Sougo and Ryuu were a second years. Like all first years, Tamaki was assigned a mentor to help him transition from high school life to university life. Sougo had applied to be a mentor, and had ended up being Tamaki’s. Ryuu still remembered his first meeting with Tamaki. Sougo had brought the younger student to watch Ryuu’s vocal recital, since Tamaki had told him that he was interested in the music program.

“Okay,” Ryuu gave in. “Thank you for your support, Tamaki-kun. I’ll try to talk to Sougo-kun this evening.”

“That’s good. Trust me, Ryuu-aniki, there’s no way Sou-chan would ever say no.”

* * *

 

“Ah…” Sougo trailed off hesitantly. “I think I signed up to host a TA session this Friday.”

Ryuunosuke held in his sigh. “O-Oh, it’s fine, Sougo-kun. Your session’s more important.”

“Oh, no, I wasn’t turning you down at all, Tsunashi-san!” Sougo quickly reassured. “I was just thinking out loud and wondering if I could ask someone else to cover for me. I would definitely love to go with you to the Snow Festival!”

A large grin broke across Ryuu’s face. “What time would you like to meet up? I only have a couple of morning classes, and after that I’m free for the day.”

“I only have morning classes on Friday too. If you don't mind, we could meet at the university gate at around 3 PM?” Sougo suggested with a shy smile and a small blush dusting his cheeks.

“That would be great,” Ryuu replied. “According to Gaku, there are plenty of things to enjoy at the festival.”

“Yes, I’ve heard a lot of good things about it!” Sougo excitedly gushed. “According to their official website as well as some blogs I’ve stumbled upon, there’s a lot of cheap and delicious food served at the food stalls, and there are opportunities to snowboard and ice-skate! I actually wanted to attend at least one day of the festival during my first year here, but I had to return home due to a family emergency and— Oh, I’m so sorry,” Sougo stopped himself. “I’m rambling aren’t I?”

Ryuu shook his head. “I don’t mind at all, Sougo-kun. I’m happy to hear that you’re excited for the festival.”

Sougo beamed at Ryuunosuke. “Excited doesn’t even begin to cover my feelings right now, Tsunashi-san. Thank you so much for inviting me to go with you! I hope I won’t be intruding too much on your time with your friends.”

“My friends…?” Ryuu cocked his head to the side. “You mean Gaku and Tenn?”

Sougo nodded.

“They’re not coming with us. They already have their own plans,” Ryuu clarified.

Sougo’s mouth froze in an “o”. After a couple of seconds, he spoke, “W-Wait, so, this is just going to be the two of us…?”

“Yes… I hope it’s not a problem…?”

“It’s definitely not a problem! It’s actually the opposite of a problem!”

“Okay, that’s good! I’m glad to hear it’s not a problem.”

After that abrupt exchange, the two of them stared at each other for a while before breaking out into matching smiles and bursting into chuckles.

“I apologize,” Sougo started. “I was just a little surprised.”

“No, I should have clarified that it was only going to be the two of us,” Ryuu replied. “So, I’ll see you at 3 PM on Friday?”

Sougo nodded. “I’ll see you then, Tsunashi-san!”

* * *

 

“You’re welcome, Sou-chan.”

Sougo walked towards Tamaki, who was lying on the couch, phone in his hand, in their dorm’s common room. Once Sougo was right in front of the couch, Tamaki sat up and scooted to the side to make room for the older student.

“I’m going to guess that you were the one who pushed Tsunashi-san into asking me to the Snow Festival.”

“I wouldn’t say I _pushed_ him,” Tamaki said. “He just… hinted that he wanted to go to the festival and invite you, so I just nudged him a bit.”

“Tamaki-kun, I hope you didn’t trouble Tsunashi-san too much by doing that.”

“Ryuu-aniki wanted to ask you in the first place though. I just gave him a little more motivation,” Tamaki defended. “You’re super happy though aren’t you, Sou-chan? You can’t even hold in that smile you’re trying so hard to hide.”

True enough, the tips of Sougo’s lips were upturned, but Sougo, trying to remain serious, was attempting to suppress the smile that threatened to surface.

“You’re a good friend, Tamaki-kun.”

“You two needed some encouragement,” Tamaki continued. “Also, Sou-chan, you always look super happy whenever Ryuu-aniki’s involved. From what I’ve seen in the past year, Ryuu-aniki also likes being with you. I know you think you may be troubling him sometimes, but trust me, he definitely enjoys spending time with you.”

“Tsunashi-san’s too nice to reject any of our offers to hang out,” Sougo pointed out. “Even if he’s busy, he’d make time and—”

“Because he wants to,” Tamaki interrupted. “Ryuu-aniki’s really nice, yes, but he makes time because he wants to. Sou-chan, I can see from a mile away that you really admire Ryuu-aniki, and I can tell you that he feels the same way.”

Sougo shook his head fiercely. “Tsunashi-san’s such a talented person! So many people look up to him, of course, myself included. I’m just someone who almost got kicked out of my own home because I wanted to pursue music, and I can’t even create a decent composition.”

Tamaki lightly tapped his phone on the side of Sougo’s head. “There you go again, saying those types of things. I get that you’re a big fan of Ryuu-aniki and his achievements, but you’re amazing yourself, and so many people can see that!”

Sougo gave Tamaki a small, tired smile. “Thank you for being a great friend, Tamaki-kun.”

“Mmhm! I am a good friend,” Tamaki praised himself. “Now Sou-chan, when you get back from your date, you have to tell me how it went, okay?”

“D-Date…” Sougo stuttered.

 _“It really does sound like a date,”_ Sougo thought. He suddenly slapped his cheeks with both of his palms (both surprising and scaring Tamaki a little). _“Okay Sougo, you can do this! Friday will be fun!”_

* * *

Friday arrived in the blink of an eye, and before Sougo knew it, he was weaving through the crowd at the snow festival, along with Ryuu. They recently arrived, and, for the past few minutes, have just been trying to navigate around the area.

Sougo’s eyes sparkled when he spotted the ice skating rink. His hand shot up to grab the sleeve of Ryuu’s upper arm. “There’s an ice skating rink.”

Ryuu looked over at the rink. The area was filled with people of all ages: families and couples mostly. “Do you like ice skating?”

Sougo’s lips pressed together in a tight line as he brought his gaze away from Ryuu’s. “To be honest, I never had the chance to try it. I’ve always wanted to, but I never got the time or permission.”

“Well, now’s the time to try it!” Ryuu grasped Sougo’s hand, which was still gripping his sleeve, and gently led him towards the rink.

They borrowed two pairs of skates from the rental area. As they were putting on their shoes, Sougo asked, “Have you ever gone ice skating before, Tsunashi-san?”

Ryuu hummed. “I have. My first time ice-skating was when I was still in high school, when I moved from Okinawa to Tokyo. I first met Gaku and Tenn then. They were the ones who took me ice skating during my first winter here, when I told them that I had never gone before.”

“That’s really nice!” Sougo commented. “This is my first time trying, so I may be hanging onto the walls the whole time.”

“You’ll get the hang of it,” Ryuu reassured as he stood up. “Here, let me help you up.”

Ryuu extended his hand to Sougo. Sougo, struggling to stand, but also not wanting to look like a total noob, hesitantly reached for Ryuu’s hand. Ryuu grasped Sougo’s hand in a firm grip and pulled him up. Although Sougo wanted to reassure Ryuu that he would be okay and that he’d be able to walk on to the ice on his own, he also didn’t want to fall face first on the ground the second he let go of Ryuu’s hand.

Ryuu was extremely understanding and compassionate. When they got on the ice, Sougo immediately grabbed the wall with both hands while Ryuu also steadied himself against the wall, patiently waiting for Sougo to get used to the feeling of being on the rink. Ryuu instructed Sougo to put one hand on the wall, while gently taking his other hand. He patiently led Sougo around the rink, looking back and making sure every so often, that Sougo was doing okay and always asking how he’s feeling.

Once they’ve gone around the edge of the rink a few times, Ryuu checked in on Sougo to see how he’s adapting.

“I think I’m learning,” Sougo excitedly answered. “It’s getting a little easier to move around.”

“Do you want to try going in the middle?” Ryuu suggested.

Sougo thought for a while. “Maybe after a couple more rounds around the rink?”

“As you wish,” Ryuu replied with a bright smile.

Like Sougo asked, they went around the edge of the rink a few times before trying to skate more towards the middle of the rink. There were, of course, times when Sougo slipped and fell right on his butt, but he didn’t even feel embarrassed anymore. Both Ryuu and Sougo were laughing messes. Sougo tried to go on his hands and knees and try to stand back up, but to no avail. Ryuu had to keep helping him out multiple times.

Both men, high on adrenaline and joy, gravitated to each other and held out both their hands. Ryuu lightly grasped Sougo’s hands in his and led him around the rink, in several directions.

Sougo was having the time of his life. He finally got to experience ice-skating, and with Ryuu too! A wide, unstoppable grin tugged at his lips, accompanying a pink blush that dusted his cheeks. With these moments, his heart could burst with happiness.

* * *

“Here you go Sougo-kun.”

Ryuu handed Sougo a steaming sweet potato. With a small smile and a “Thank you”,  Sougo accepted it and blew on it before taking a bite. Sougo’s eyes widened and Ryuu swore they sparkled in the winter sunlight.

“Thish ish so good!” Sougo moaned, while simultaneously trying to chew and swallow the steaming piece of potato.

Ryuu took a bite of the sweet potato he bought for himself and sighed in satisfaction. Sougo really wasn’t exaggerating with his response.

“Is there anything else you’d like to do here?” Ryuu asked as the two of them started walking around again.

“Hmm,” Sougo hummed. “What about you, Tsunashi-san? Is there anything else you’d like to see or do before the illuminations start?”

“Oooh, hey it’s Ryuu and Sougo!”

The two of them were suddenly interrupted by a third person, who came between them from behind and swung his arms around their shoulders.

“Momo,” a different, calmer voice spoke. “You should go easy on our kouhais.”

Momo laughed jovially and took his weight off of Sougo and Ryuu. “Sorry, sorry you two. I spotted you guys at the rink when Yuki and I were about to try snowboarding, and I just had to find you two again and say hi.”

“Momo-san, Yuki-san, good evening,” Sougo said, while Ryuu nodded his head in greeting. 

“I see you two finally got the courage to ask each other out,” Momo teased, a sly grin spreading across his face. “I saw you guys holding hands at the rink, you can’t fool your senpais.”

Ryuu, a blush immediately coloring his cheeks, coughed in response while Sougo buried his face in his palms.

“I mean, um,” Ryuu stuttered. “Sougo-kun has been wanting to come here, and I’ve heard a lot of good things, and I was curious too so…”

“Though it does sound like you’re trying to change the subject a little, I don’t hear any denials of this being a date,” Yuki pointed out. “This is quite an improvement, isn’t it Momo?”

Momo nodded in agreement. He skipped closer to Yuki and wrapped his arms around Yuki’s right arm. “It is! As your senpais in the same major, let me tell you two, both Yuki and I were waiting for the moment when you two would just go for it and take the first step. I’m so glad to see you two here on a date,” Momo sniffled. “Our kids grow up so fast, don't they, darling?”

“They certainly do. It feels like only yesterday that we met them at our TA session.” Yuki dramatically wiped a non-existent tear from his eyes and played along with Momo.

Ryuu and Sougo nervously chuckled. “Please don’t tease us so much, Momo-san, Yuki-san,” Ryuu said. Sougo was slowly disappearing behind Ryuu from the building embarrassment.

“Okay, okay,” Momo continued. “Yuki and I will leave you two alone now. We have our own date to continue, don’t we?”

Yuki lovingly met Momo’s gaze and, using his free hand, pulled down the edges of Momo’s winter hat so that it covered the tips of his ears. “We do. It was nice to run into you two. Have fun, Ryuu-kun, Sougo-kun. Don’t do anything we wouldn’t do.”

Momo and Yuki waved goodbye and calmly walked away from the blushing and stuttering Ryuu and Sougo.

“Our senpais really are a force to be reckoned with, aren’t they,” Ryuu commented. Sougo was still behind Ryuu, with his forehead pressed against Ryuu’s back. “Sougo-kun? Are you okay?”

Sougo nodded, his forehead still against Ryuu’s back. “Our senpais really go all out with the teasing.”

“They do. I’m glad we have such caring senpais.”

“Ahaha, I guess caring is one word for them.”

The rest of their time at the festival was spent by them trying out other activities, such as snowboarding, and helping themselves to the cheap but delicious, steamy food. Before they knew it, the sun had set, and the stars had dotted the sky. Once it was near 10 PM, they decided to start heading back home.

* * *

“Thank you so much for inviting me today, Tsunashi-san,” Sougo thanked, as Ryuu as they walked back to the dorm area from the train station. “I enjoyed spending today with you.”

“I’m glad you did, Sougo-kun,” Ryuu said with a small smile. “I enjoyed myself a lot today too. I’m glad I was able to actually get the courage to ask you out on time.”

“I’m glad you did as well,” Sougo admitted. “To be honest, I wanted to ask you as well, but I just couldn’t work up the courage to.”

“It’s also thanks to Tamaki-kun,” Ryuu added. “If he didn’t confront me, I may have let this chance go.”

“I guess we both should buy some King Puddings for Tamaki-kun,” Sougo chuckled.

“He’s a good kid, and a great friend.”

“He is,” Sougo agreed. “He may act childish at times, may not go to classes on time, and may sometimes be unreasonable, it doesn’t change the fact that he’s a good person and friend. A lot of people say that I’m always taking care of him. But, if I’m being honest, he’s always there to support me, and can be very perceptive.”

“You two have a very strong friendship. It’s very similar to my bond with Tenn and Gaku. You know they’ll always be there for you no matter what.”

Sougo nodded. The two of them then continued talking about their friends and classes, and after that, walked in comfortable silence. As they walked, the backs of their glove covered hands brushed each other a couple of times. Although both of them were aware, they were completely comfortable with that level of touch after spending the day with each other (not to mention actually having held hands at the ice rink).

Sougo though, decided to take a leap of faith. The next time their hands brushed, Sougo took a hold of Ryuu’s fingers, jostling Ryuu and causing him to glance down at Sougo. A blushing Sougo looked straight up at Ryuu and met his gaze. Ryuu’s gaze softened and a warm smile slowly spread across his lips as Ryuu shifted his fingers a bit so that his and Sougo’s fingers were intertwined.

A sharp intake of breath then transitioned to a soft, appreciative chuckle from Sougo. Ryuu noticed how Sougo would usually suppress his emotions in front of others, sometimes including himself. So, when Sougo openly showed how happy he was at that moment, all bright smiles and soft laughs directed at Ryuu, it warmed the older student’s heart and made it beat just a little bit faster.

When they arrived at the doorstep of Sougo’s dorm, they found that, when they’re together, time passed by a little too quickly. They hesitantly unlocked their intertwined fingers. Sougo grabbed his keys from his pocket and started unlocking the door.

“Thank you again for today, Tsunashi-san.”

“It’s my pleasure. Thank you for accompanying me today.”

After Sougo had unlocked the door, they stood, facing each other, for a few more seconds. Ryuu then broke the silence. “I should get back to my dorm too. Have a good night, Sougo-kun.”

Sougo’s fingers twitched. Should he, or should he not? Sougo finally decided, after everything they have experienced today, that _yes, he should_ , and reached out to Ryuu. Placing his hand on Ryuu’s shoulder, he turned the older student around and, going on his tip toes, pressed his lips to the corner of Ryuu’s lips.

 _“I only wanted to aim for his cheeks though!”_ Sougo went into a mental crisis as he quickly pulled away. _“This is so embarrassing, I should just go inside…”_

Ryuu’s eyes widened at Sougo’s surprise attack, but before the extremely embarrassed Sougo could quickly mutter an apology and run inside, Ryuu himself gently placed his hands on both of Sougo’s shoulders, causing him to jump slightly. Sougo’s bravery from earlier slowly dissipated, and he found himself trying to avoid Ryuu’s gaze. 

“Sougo-kun,” Ryuu whispered. “May I?”

Sougo could swear, at that moment, that his face was burning. Ryuu himself had a bright pink flush on his face and was trying not to show his nervousness even though his heart was threatening to beat out of his chest. Sougo let out a breath that he didn’t even know he was holding and raised his head to meet Ryuu’s piercing gaze.

“You may.”

Ryuu leaned down while Sougo tilted his head up, until their lips met in a chaste kiss. Both of them naturally stepped closer, into each other’s space. Ryuu brought his hands from Sougo’s shoulders to cradling the back of his head and wrapping his other arm around the small of Sougo’s back. Sougo, who had his arms rigidly by his side in the beginning, wrapped both of them around Ryuu’s neck.

They pulled away from each other, still breathless and amazed after sharing their first kiss together. Both of them couldn’t help the large smile that graced their lips. Like magnets, they leaned in again for another kiss.

As they stood, wrapped in each other’s arms, some flecks of snow started floating down. Soon, they were surrounded by small, falling snowflakes, as if they were two figures in a snow-globe.

A beautiful end to a beautiful day that both Sougo and Ryuu would remember for years to come.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi Julia!! I'm your secret santa! Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoyed this fic, and hope I was able to deliver fluffy RyuuSou to you! ^_^  
> At first, honestly, it was a little bit of a struggle, and I had a different idea, but once I got this idea, writing this fic was so much fun! I'm so glad I was able to participate in this exchange.  
> I wish everyone happy holidays!! 
> 
> Fun fact about the title: I wanted to do a play on of the words “snow” and “courage” in Japanese (雪（ゆき）and 勇気（ゆうき), and...my title happened xD


End file.
